Deep in the meadow, there was a Clover
by dentrode
Summary: Clove was trained from birth to fight to the death in the 74th anniversary of the hunger games, but what about her life before she was murdered by Thresh, the avengeful tribute from District 11? Who was she? summmary is bad, read story please!
1. Chapter 1

_Note; I do not own any part of the Hunger Games and all characters are purely fictional, so please do not consider this as a part of infringement or copyright, thank you! All reviews are welcome, and sorry if I am not entirely accurate in all aspects, so thanks for reading, and please review! You, the audience, can help me and tell me if I should continue this chapter.(plus if there are any typos a notice would be appreciated! Thanks and enjoy the story!_

Clove peered down the steep incline, nervous about the trip down. She never truly did like heights. But, unfortunately, it was part of her training for the upcoming 74th anniversary of the Hunger Games. She sighed and leaned back on the near outcropping of rocks, wondering when Cato and the other trainees would show up. She'd been there for half an hour, in the middle of the forestry surrounding the third point mark for the exercise that her trainer was putting her through. The point was to exercise stamina by setting an endurance pace along the 18 mile trek and eventually meet up with other trainees at each marked point. The trek had not been at all comfortable with what she was used to; precise exercising that developed her weapons abilities in a small air-conditioned facility that now hardly prepared her for the dry and arid outdoors that contained the towering mountains which she now had to hike. Clove felt that this was a high disappointment for her expectations of normalcy, let alone she hardly thought it was worth her time. She felt distracted and knew that she was ahead of her fellow trainees. If anything was the questionable cause of distraction, it would have definitely been the anxiousness that continually ate at her for the week leading up to the choosing of the tributes. That would be the week for the final test of the trainees; a test not very looked forward to by her peers and even by herself. A rustle in one of the trees to her left caught her attention, and she quickly turned around with her primary throwing knife appearing in her right hand. The knife was shaking, from an un-quieted fear that resounded in her heartbeat. Her eyes swiveled around, looking for the designated sound that had distracted her. Another rustle sounded off, and Clove quickly caught the sound and peered up into the towering pine tree 3 rows next to her to meet Cato's eyes, which were staring back with a small glint of a smile. Clove sighed again and quickly relaxed; those calming eyes had suppressed many surprises, including the fear of one of the "persuasive automatons", which were automatic machinery weapons that continually tested the tribute trainees for awareness with slight shocks shot from tiny hidden metal canisters. The automatons were potentially dangerous, and even the slightest touch from one of the shock blasts could cause a great amount of pain in the hit area. So, generally, to be hit by a shock blast was not the most favorable or pleasurable experience that any person would want to endure.

_So much has changed about him _she thought as she watched him slowly climb down the tree. _He pretends to trust everyone, and yet I find him hiding among the trees from me like a shy tribute from District 11, and yet I know better. _Clove spun around and faced the incline again while waiting for him to climb down the tree and approach her. She contemplated jumping off the incline to the flat ridge below. If he was willing to hide from her, then why should she make it easy for him to find her? Clover quickly jumped down the incline while sliding down its pebble ridden surface. The top of her foot caught on a small rock and she tumbled down the rest of the incline; narrowly missing several jagged rocks and eventually landing on the flat ground below with a dull thud. _Where to hide? _She thought while searching for Cato. Another dull thud sounded next to her, and her cheeks flushed as she scrambled to her feet to meet the incredulous stare thatCato gave her. Another bunch of bushes rustled to her right as the three other trainees rose from their well-concealed hiding places. "Well, trying to run away now were we?" he said with an irritated expression. She circled around, looking for an escape route. There had to be a way out. Even though Cato was a friend, there was nothing stopping him from "stalling" her on her trek. The Capitol's officials in District 2 choose their tributes by the final test and the previous experiments and tests that had occurred previously in the training program. The determinant of whether a person passed the final test was focused on the tribute trainee's ranking, and if you were in the top 2 ranking positions of each gender then you passed. The movement of one of the other tribute trainee's, nick-named Boule, caught Clove's attention. "There is no point in hurting Clove, Cato." The light-skinned boy said. "She's not of the same gender; it would not help to stall her if it doesn't affect our rankings." Cato glared at Boule, obviously not wanting to relent on his frustration from competition. The familiar whirr of an automaton sent the group into a hurried dive as a round of pressurized shock blasts flew above their heads and ended up grazing Boule's head, as he had the slowest reactions out of the group and unfortunately was still partially in the path of the shock blasts. Cato stared at Clove as Boule howled with pain and writhed on the ground.

_I forgot how much he can be so competitive _Clove thought. _Those eyes are mischievous; and you can never _really_ tell what his motives are for what he does._

Cato seemed to be thinking about his options at the moment, and Clove slightly shook at the look that he was giving her. The look described him for what he was; a competitor bred for the unhealthy sake of killing others for order. But, the look also had something else in it. Was it fear that Clove saw? Or was it anger at something other than the situation at hand? After quick glances from everyone at the automaton, which seemed at peace now, the entire group warily stood as they had been before and Boule had fully recuperated from his unfortunate experience. Clove considered what Cato was thinking, and she wanted to know what it was before he made a move that could endanger her. Before Clove could really think about what Cato was feeling, she suddenly became aware of her silent and awkward surroundings. Everyone was staring at her, obviously for some apparent reason, yet she could not figure out what sane reason it could be for. "Clove, he asked you a question" demanded Arrow, another trainee. The group of four still stared at Clove, who seemed to just shrink in her footsteps at the glowering looks each trainee gave her. "And what, per-say, would this important question be?" Clove murmured sarcastically. "One that I should actually listen too? Or one that you are just using for a bullying threat that everyone knows you can never actually _enforce_?" she said a little more boldly. In less than a second she was lifted two inches off the ground by her collar by very strong hands, now facing a growling Cato nose-to-nose.

_So much anger in those eyes _Clove thought curiously. _For what purpose? If anything I should be the one that is mad at Cato, not the other way around._

Clove thought about who Cato really was and what he was doing. He had never been this forceful before, yet alone threatening to _her_, although they had not particularly been the best of friends. She looked again into those eyes deeply engraved with the hatred for everything that stood for who he truly was. His usual joking and candid mood turned menacing after he cleared his throat and caught the attention of the others. Clove's face turned ashen grey when his lurid voice slowly dripped out each word with pure hatred with the sentence that poured out of his tight-lipped mouth.

"I _said_, Clove, why should we leave you alive?"


	2. Chapter 2

_Note; I do not own any part of the Hunger Games and all characters are purely fictional, so please do not consider this as a part of infringement or copyright, thank you! All reviews are welcome, and sorry if I am not entirely accurate in all aspects, so thanks for reading, and please review!_

Clove stared into Cato's swirling eyes, wondering if she had truly heard right. He wanted her _dead_? Arrow and Boule exchanged a quick look, each silently debating who should try to hold Cato back. When both trainees refused to move, Clove decided to take the matter into her own hands. She had to escape, and quickly. Her death wouldn't exactly get her the first position in the rankings. She glanced around, taking in her surroundings to see what she could use. Her eye caught on the glint of steel in the underbrush, and her idea suddenly came into pristine perspective.

"Why, in fact, I have many reasons to live, and I don't plan on dying." Clove retorted to Cato's threat. The response caught Cato off guard, and for a second Clove saw him tense with suspicion. She knew she would regret her next action, but she decided to commence with it no matter what the cost. She twisted in Cato's hands and bent her legs to place her feet on his chest. The next second she pushed her legs with all her might and thrust herself out of his clutches. Cato flew backwards and landed on Arrow and Boule, and the three fell into a tangled mess of limbs. Clove knew she had to hurry, but her plan was not to run away. She had never been the fastest runner, and she already knew that the trio would quickly overcome her if she tried. She struggled to stand back up, but her legs failed to comply. She shakily got up on her knees and started to feel queasy. She had landed wrong on her ankle, and when she bent over to look at it she found it to be enormously swelled and a grayish-purple color. Something was definitely fractured there. A solid foot landed on her back and thrust her into the bushes. She turned onto her side and while brushing the leaves and dirt off of her chest she looked up to see another foot coming at her face. The tough leather hiking boot caught her on the chin and sent her reeling backwards. She stared up into the furious faces of Arrow, Boule, and Cato; and none looked the least bit relentless. Her jaw throbbed with fiery pain and blood started running down her throat.

"Humor me," Cato demanded, "and tell me what exactly was your plan?" He circled around her, almost like a predator that knew his prey had no place to run or hide. Arrow and Boule moved to cut off all possible escape routes, and stood their ground between Clove and the break in the pine trees. Cato gingerly leaned over her, and his face was so close to hers that she could smell the sweet briskness of his breath. "You have no chance of escaping, and yet you still try to challenge _me_?" he softly whispered. He grabbed her jaw and forced her eyes to look into his, wreaking enough pain to bring tears to her eyes. She had no doubt now that her jawbone was either fractured or just plainly shattered. She gasped with the pain and Cato smiled from her reaction. "I will enjoy this very much, and I hope that you realize your mistake in crossing me. No one will ever beat me at what I do best; especially _you_ Clove." He said as he brought out a small pocketknife. A fearful image of Cato stabbing her and slowly twisting the knife in her heart burned into her thoughts, but it did not stop her from her next move. Clove used every ounce of strength that she had to lift up a small rock and slammed it on the automaton resting next to her. She had spotted it earlier when the sun had glinted off of its shiny titanium metal, and had been instantly reminded of its defense mechanism. The harsh movement triggered the disruption defense system and set off another couple rounds of shock blasts, of which dozens were spewed over the other trainees faces. Clove ducked and got below the firing range of the mechanism and scrambled away as fast as she could. The three screamed with pain as probably hundreds of mini shock blasts pelted their faces, abdomens, legs, and arms. Clove limped away to the cover of the trees and glanced back at the suffering trainees. She almost felt bad for what she did.Almost.

Clove searched for a familiar marking, one that would tell her where the next check in point would be. She knew she had to be there before Cato and the others did, or else she would just be surrounded by them the instant she tried to check in. _Safety comes in numbers _she thought suddenly. Her mind quickly devised another plan. What if she could find the other trainee groups? There were four other groups, and maybe if she stuck around one of them they could help shelter her from any 'stalls' from Cato and his group might inflict upon her. A red cardinal squawked and flew from a small Beaked hazelnut bush and startled Clove. She quickly lost her footing and tumbled down another shallow incline on her left. _ This might as well be the hunger games _she thought bitterly. _ I can't even walk 2 miles without falling and hurting myself again. _ Her ankle throbbed even more from the overuse it was being put through, and her jaw felt as if hundreds of tracker jackers had injected their venom into the same spot. The image made her shudder as a sudden foreboding mode came over her. Where had the thought even came from? She had never even seen a tracker jacker, let alone ever gotten stung by one. She shook off the overshadowing mood and got back on her feet, determined to not let her bad fortune overcome her. "I _will _win." She said aloud. "I will make it, and no one, not even him can stop me. I will beat the odds, and they _will _be in my favor!" She screamed aloud while bitterly thinking about Cato and his dastardly minions. Why, if she'd been without injury and he was right in front of her, she'd be sure to choke him to death with her own hands.

"Who's him?" a voice chided behind her.

Clove whirled around to see a dark and tall figure leaning against the tree behind her, staring at her with an eyebrow raised at her defiant position. For the first time in days, Clove's confidence wavered, and she felt true fear take its place deep in her chest. In front of her a stranger stood, whose actions might lead to life or to her destruction. She shuddered at the possibility, wondering where her fate lay. The stranger cleared his throat, and her eyes turned eagerly to stare into his face, wondering dearly with all her might what he was about to say.

_Ok so a little bit of a cliff hanger there, please review and tell me if I should continue, and thanks for reading!_


	3. Chapter 3

_Note; I do not own any part of the Hunger Games and all characters are purely fictional, so please do not consider this as a part of infringement or copyright, thank you! All reviews are welcome, and sorry if I am not entirely accurate in all aspects, so thanks for reading, and please review!_

The semi- dangerous person kept his eyebrows raised; now seemingly expecting a response out of Clove. She now angrily stared him down, but her eyes soon failed as the twilight sun blinded her and forced her to look away. The burrowing animals and birds were now hushed; as if the moment needed silence to intensify the mood. The sun was now setting in a sky a deep shade of blue, and its position revealed to set the time at almost seven o'clock by her reckoning. Training had at least equipped her with that small benefit.

_Now it's too late to meet up with another group._ _What's your brilliant plan c now, Clove? _She was furious with her stoke of bad luck and with herself. She thought she was better trained for this. Or at least better trained to survive a measly day in the training field. Most of the training groups would be almost finished with their treks, and now she would be forced to wait till dawn to move out or to risk moving in the nighttime without the ability to see well. First though, she had to deal with her mysterious and maybe dangerous opponent.

It took Clove awhile to remember what the strange person had said, and she still remained confused until the man spoke again. "Well, who is 'he'?" he inquiringly asked again. To Clove the question was anything but inquiring. In fact, it infuriated her. His repetition of the question made her feel stupid, not to mention deaf and perhaps slow-witted. "Why should I tell you who 'him' is?" she snarled at him, trying to be as imposing and threatening as possible. The stray thought of a memory flickered by in her head, bouncing around and finally settling to put her into a more somber mood. The memory brought a hint of humor into her emotions, but it was quickly smothered out by grief and non-disclosure. The memory was almost too painful to comprehend, but she knew she had to face it one way or another. It inspired a feeling of peace, but the memory could also be mentally crippling. She winced as the past emotions and events played out through her mind again, each moment painful and precisely sharp.

_The beautiful woman was braiding Cloves hair, each strand of hair seeming to exasperate her as it slipped out of its desired place. Clove giggled as the woman made another sad sigh, maybe a good sign for Clove. She never liked girly things, and braiding hair was especially on the not-wanted list in her childish mind. The lady smiled at the antsy but bright little girl in her lap, grateful that she had had the chance to spend this last day with her. "Can I leave now?" the impatient little Clove asked. The lady let out a slight titter of a laugh, the sound reminiscent of little bells. "No, little one, not yet. Soon, but not yet." Clove let out her exasperated sigh, now officially bored and tiresome. The lady's smile disappeared, but only for a second. Another smile alighted on her face when she asked Clove if she wanted to hear a story. When little Clove responded with a shy 'yes', the lady took a deep breath of air, as if needing it for a giant journey of some sort. Clove giggled again, loving the little things that the lady did in preparation of a good story. The lady's back straightened, and she tightened every muscle in her body; which unfortunately forced her fingers to pull on Cloves scrappy but tender hair. "Well little chickadee, let's see what I should tell you today..." the lady started. Clove smiled with a great goofy grin. The lady always knew what her story would be; there really was no need for consideration of what subject it would be on. "Hmm, maybe a story with fierce dragons and dainty princesses?" she teased at the little girl. Clove shook her head really fast, maybe hoping that her denial could possibly change the story. The lady gave out a little laugh again and started on her story. "Well then, how about the story how the mighty tiger got transformed into our tiny meek housecat?" Clove nodded now with great ferocity and sureness, even though she undoubtedly had almost no idea what the lady was talking about. "Alright then, let's begin. There once was a great and large tiger, who was king of the entire forest. He controlled each small ant to the largest antelope in the entire area of his domain. He hunted when he wanted to, and not even the other great tigers or lions were able to defeat him. He was the ultimate predator. When another animal posed a threat to him he growled or let out a giant roar and scared the other animals away!' the lady boasted and pretended to look mighty and scary. She tickled little Clove and set her into a giggling fit and said "And don't even _let _him bite you, because it's sure going to not be fun!" Clove giggling subsided and the lady then continued in a strong story-telling mantra. "Even the dear moon and stars were scared of him, which is why he has his own constellation among the stars and his own paw-print on the moon! But then one day a new predator came into his domain, and tested the tiger. He said the tiger could lose everything mighty that he had if he failed this test. And do you know what? The tiger just laughed at him and mocked the new predator when he revealed the test." The lady paused at this to check if Clove had fallen asleep when an encouraging prod was forced into her side. She continued on with a bright knowing smile. "The test challenged the tiger to go a single day in humbleness without any pride ot terror-wreaking among every living thing in his domain. The tiger, already filled with pride and overconfidence, accepted the challenge. The tiger was wary at first, but then concluded that his challenge was nothing but a fake. So, the hour before his day was up the tiger went about his normal business and roared and terrified everything in his sight. The new predator revealed himself at the end of the day with a winged creature that looked like a human next to him. 'Since you have broken your promise upon the challenge, then you shall receive your punishment!' the new being hissed at the tiger. The tiger, still ignorant and overfilled with confidence scoffed at the new predator and the weird being."Nothing can ever defeat me!' he defiantly growled, and then he roared a mighty roar and swiped at the new beings with a giant paw. The action did nothing, of course, and the new predator exclaimed, 'be punished!' as the weird being called an angel grabbed onto the tigers paw. The tiger felt himself getting smaller and smaller, until he was no higher than a foot tall. His stripes slowly faded away and new dark patches of fur swirled into a new pattern that made him spotted like a giraffe. The tiger screamed and roared with great might as all of his great qualities faded away and he became a small undignified and meek creature, which the new predator named the cat. The cat, once the tiger, mourned all of his great and lost qualities and fell into a deep depressed sleep for years. He could never get over his loss, which is why all of the cats that came from him today have such malignant behavior." The lady peered down to see Clove staring with owl eyes, appearing to be very interested in the story. "AND that is why the cat always appears to make himself more imposing and fearful by fluffing up his hair and standing reallllly tall, because he still wants to be the tiger he once was." The lady commented as she finished braiding little Cloves hair. Clove happily hugged the lady and thanked her for the story before she ran out of the small house and into the forest. She couldn't help but notice the bit of sadness in the lady's eyes as she gracefully leaped down the small staircase to the landing below._

Clove was startled back into reality. What was it that had triggered that memory? After pondering over it for a couple of seconds, she realized that she had compared herself to the tiny cat. She was trying to be as imposing as possible because all of her great talents could not get her out of the predicament now. Clove glanced back at the waiting man, boredom now playing out in his eyes. Clove remembered a small lesson from one of her tutors in her younger days about the brain and how fast it truly functioned in the world. Thought processes and recalling/reliving of a memory could seem to take hours, but really only last the time span of mere minutes or even seconds. She hoped it was the same case here and that she hadn't been frozen there reminiscing for hours. The memory pricked at her conscious again, but she pushed it away. She had to deal with what was at hand first. The man, now seeing that Clove was at full attention, shoved a hand casually forward and apologized.

"The name's Thresh, sorry if I startled you or somethin'." His mood was very nonchalant and even casual from what Clove could infer. She looked at his hand, wondering if she should accept the gesture or not. Maybe it was time she should stop being the defensive and imposing cat for once. Clove gingerly smiled and grabbed the dark and moist hand that was offered to her. "I'm Clove." She answered. Thresh's dark hazel eyes lit up, and his smile grew to be even bigger than it had been before. "Nice to meet you Clove, would you care to come back with me to the main city or do you prefer the wilderness to yourself?" he asked with a glint of humor. Those dark eyes reminded her of the lady that had told her the story. The lady that had brought so much happiness that was eventually stripped away when she was tortured for the crime of rebellion that she had had no idea of. The lady that tried to keep Clove safe from the life she was living now. That lady, whose inspiring eyes and the inviting happiness that they offered and were also reminiscent of Thresh's, was everything to her. Clove couldn't help but to feel belittled and saddened by the mere reminder of a quality that the lady once had. That lady, who she dearly loved so much and from which the memory brought back such pain, was her mother.


	4. Chapter 4

_I do not own the hunger games, and I have no intention of copyright or infringement! just enjoy the story, and all reviews are welcome! The last chapter was really only emotional based, so just keep reading! The action WILL come again, I promise!_

The pain in Clove's ankle started to spread, and soon she started to think that it was more than just her ankle that was fractured. She hissed as another wave of pain throbbed through her favored leg. Her hiss awarded her with a curious look from Thresh, and she smiled quickly to wave off his concern. _I must not let anyone know that I am injured, _she thought again for the hundredth time. Her training had at least taught her that injury would show her weakness, and weakness eventually convinced others that she could be an easy target. And as everyone in her

district knew, easy targets never made it out of anything alive. Therefore, she decided to hide her injuries from Thresh, just to avoid any kind of future conflict. Although she had agreed to go with Thresh to her home city, she didn't trust him fully. She definitley did not know him that well to start out with; for all she knew he had been sent by the training directors to set her into another trap. But something made her think that Thresh couldn't ever be with the training center. First of all, she would have known if there had been any new inductee groups, even if they had been secretly transferred to the training center as countless other inductee's had. Secondly, he didn't even look like a person from her district. District 2 citizens were known to be pale and short (although some were known to be a bit on the tall side), and Thresh was the exact opposite of all of those characteristics. Even if he had immigrated from another district, he definitley would not be in the training business for the Hunger Games. All of the people who immigrated and emigrated to other Districts were either very wealthy or had a very powerful position in the political world, which allowed them more freedom than most of the other plain and ordinary citizens of each district. So, with all of those conditions ruled out, Clove knew that Thresh honestly couldn't be from the training center. However, one thing still nagged at her thoughts. She had to know that one thing to trust him a little bit more.

" So...Thresh. What brought you her to this side of District 2?" She inquired carefully. Her statement brought a sharp end to the silence that had lasted the last 10 or so minutes that they had been traveling through the murky and now gloomily dark thought of her lost mother tried to intrude in on her thoughts, but she pushed it away and focused on her situation. She wouldn't let her mother's death bring her down into misery again. Thresh grinned slightly and stumbled over a gigantic pine-tree root. He corrected himself and glanced at her to see if she had noticed his misstep. Satisfied that he had kept his trip unnoticed, he grinned again and let out a laugh. "It depends, I suppose, on your reasons for asking." He leniently replied. Clove smiled and her mood lighted up, deeply contrasting the sullen mood of the forest. He was playing cat and mouse with her. Fine, she thought. He doesn't know what kind of game he's gotten himself into. " Hmm, well I suppose your not here on a nice vacation out in the wilderness. I mean, isn't it just like a resort?" she said while gesturing to the dim and some what mysterious shapes that appeared from the now descending fog. " Who wouldn't want to have a vacation here?" Thresh started to giggle, surprising Clove. Such a small sound didn't seem like it could come out of a big person like Thresh. " Well, I guess you are right on that point." he managed to fit in despite his little giggle fit. He picked up a small clump of dirt as they started to ascend a small hill. He pretended to study the dirt as if it were

a precious gem. Another smile lighted on his face and he turned to her with a mischievous look in his eyes. " Here is the finest example of what a luxury it is here. Isn't this such an amazing soil to use for a mud-bath?" he commented. Clove let a small laugh escape her, but it turned into a hysterical fit when Thresh started rubbing some of the dirt into his palm and arm while commenting, " Yes in fact, it is very luxurious!". Thresh's small giggle-fit escalated into full out laughter and Clove started to laugh along. Soon the humorous mood started to fade and again became serious. " So, why are you really here?" Clove interjected as Thresh started to brush off the dirt he had so lavishly rubbed into his arms. She struggled to stifle the laughs that still tried to overcome her. It was a good laugh, she considered. She hadn't that much fun in a long time. She snapped back into attention as Thresh let out a small sigh. His nose scrunched up, and he seemed to be in a contemplative mood. " I honestly don't know if i should tell you..." he started out. Clove internally sighed with relief. He didn't trust her either, which meant that he couldn't possibly be there because he was sent by the training directors. This non-trust, though seemingly offensive to others, always relieved showed her that not everyone was ignorant, confidant, and conniving like most of the people that she had known. Thresh's expression relaxed a bit, and he seemed to come to some decision that was still mysterious to Clove. He started back into what he was previously saying, but with a small bit of salvaged reassurance from an unknown source. "I am, I guess, not entirely from this district.." Thresh blatantly said. Clove slightly nodded her head, encouraging him to continue. " In fact, I am as far as you can get from this district. I guess you could say I'm 'just visiting' from District 11." Thresh, seemingly confident that he had not revealed too much about himself, turned to Clove with an inquiring glance. " And you?" he questioned. Now it was Clove's turn to sigh. Although she trusted him a little bit more than she previously had, she didn't know if she should tell him exactly everything. She wasn't going to lie either; there was no point to lying anyways. Even if he was sent from another potentially dangerous source, she decided that there could be nothing that could be used against her if she told him why she was stuck in this patch of unrelenting wilderness. She struggled to step over the last steep hill in her path, and she found herself at the top of a steep cliff overlooking her home city. Tiny lights shined from the houses of people who were working late night shifts. She was still far from the city, but it was comforting that she could at least see it. Distraction seemed to be a very prominent characteristic of her in the past day, not to mention the present time, and Clove again focused on her situation. She wasn't usually this forgetful or distracted, but then again it had been a very long day for her. " I was in the middle of a training program before I ran into some trouble with another trainee, and his reaction was, how could I put it, very life threatening. But I made it out alright, and now I have to return home to face my directors,which isn't going to be the nicest meeting I've ever had." She bluntly stated. She saw Threshes eyes get wider and a startling look of discomfort flickered over his face. It lasted only a fraction of a second, but Clove caught it out of the corner of her eye. " So, um, what exactly are you training for?" Thresh nervously asked. Now Clove knew the source of his discomfort, and she silently chided herself for thinking Thresh could have been different from any other person or stranger that she had met. He was as judgmental and assuming as every fake person was. Most people assumed that those who trained for the Hunger Games were hideous, unfeeling beings that loved to kill anything in their path. _In a way it is kind of true_, she bitterly thought. As far as she knew, that lie was spread across all cities in the Districts and every person seemed to hate trainees for volunteering their lives for the enjoyment of the Capitol. "The Hunger Games, what else?" she spitefully answered, each word dripping with anger. Thresh's face contorted from nervousness to slight pity and sadness. "Oh. You're one of those people." he sadly stated. " Yes, in fact, I am one of 'those' people!" She angrily screamed. Clove turned from the city view to face him, and seemed to tower over him even though he was a full foot taller her. Her new fed anger escalated from pure hot hatred to a cool and menacing tone. " I am one of those people so unloving, cold, machine-like, and deadly. I am one of 'those' people that will eternally scare you and will never feel anything because, as you know, I am typically just one of THOSE people." she angrily said. "I never even said that..." he meekly responded. "REALLY? because you sure meant it that way." Clove coldly said. Thresh looked away, at the trees, at the sky, then at the ground, not daring to meet her eyes. " Isn't that what you think?" she challenged him. The moment was tense, and Clove thought that for a moment he wouldn't even respond. "Yes." he said. His answer was so weak that she almost didn't hear it, but she surely caught the faded word.

Finally Thresh turned his eyes to her, and now regret and fear seemed to emanate from him. Clove relished every second of it. He deserved it, he really deserved that fear because, like every other person, he only cared about himself and what about what others told him. He only believed what he heard about others, and he probably didn't care to actually know a person and what they really was disgusted by her, and her by him. She had heard that tone that he had used when he had inquired about where she trained, and she thought that maybe, just once, someone would believe her for her, or at least try to understand that she wasn't what rumor stated her to be._ I don't need people like him; better yet, I don't need people at all,_ she angrily thought. The world didn't want her, and she didn't want the world or the people that begrudgingly came with it. Clove turned away and and stormily limped down a side slope that bordered the cliff, leaving a very concerned yet fear-stricken Thresh standing near the edge of the cliff by himself.


End file.
